Government & PolicyDevelopingUpdated 1 hr ago

High Court hears Reddit and rights group's challenge to under-16s social media ban

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets, mostly left-leaning (67%).

4 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Image via Al Jazeera EnglishHow images are chosen Report this image

Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project, a group led by New South Wales MP John Ruddick, are challenging Australia's ban on social media for under-16s in the High Court, where two days of hearings began on Tuesday. The ban took effect in December last year and requires platforms to deactivate accounts of users under 16. Reddit's lawyers told the court that the law was rushed and over-broad, and Reddit's submission says the ban has had limited effectiveness. The Digital Freedom Project argues that the ban impinges the implied freedom of political communication and restricts children's free communication. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said more than 5 million accounts across 10 platforms have been suspended under the ban.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. Editors read every story. How this works

New to Mantle? It shows who is covering each story across the political spectrum, and highlights loaded words. How to read a storyHide the guide

The coverage spectrum counts the outlets covering a story at each of five points. A short or missing segment means that part of the spectrum is mostly quiet.

Governor Loaded verb“slams”It adds drama to what was said. The governor criticized the lawmakers; “slams” makes it sound like a fight.More neutral: criticizes lawmakers over budget delay

Highlights mark words that carry a judgement. Tap one to see why, and what a neutral writer would say. Here it is “criticizes”.

The 5-point spectrum

Far Left
Voices that strongly advocate for progressive policies and systemic change.
Left
Mainstream liberal perspectives focusing on social equality and regulation.
Center
Sources that prioritize neutral reporting and balanced viewpoints.
Right
Mainstream conservative perspectives focusing on market freedom and tradition.
Far Right
Voices that strongly advocate for conservative values and limited government.

How we measure bias

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project are challenging the under-16s social media ban in Australia's High Court.
Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
The Guardian, Al Jazeera English
Center
BBC News
Hearings in the High Court began on Tuesday and are scheduled to run for two days.
Reported byLeft1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
The Guardian
Center
BBC News
The ban took effect in December last year and requires platforms to deactivate accounts of users under 16.
Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
The Guardian, Al Jazeera English
Center
BBC News
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said more than 5 million accounts across 10 platforms have been suspended under the ban.
One outletThe Guardian· Left
Reddit's lawyers told the court the 2024 law was rushed and over-broad.
One outletThe Guardian· Left

Show 2 more pointsShow fewer points

The Digital Freedom Project argues the ban impinges the implied freedom of political communication and robs children of free communication.
Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
The Guardian, Al Jazeera English
Center
BBC News
Reddit's submission says the ban's effectiveness has been limited.
One outletAl Jazeera English· Left

How each side tells it

Compare views

Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project are challenging Australia's under-16s social media ban in the High Court, where hearings began on Tuesday. Left outlets stress Reddit's claim that the law was rushed and has limited effect, while the BBC stresses the rights group's argument that it curbs children's free communication.

the left
2 outlets
Left headlines lead with the challenge and Reddit's case that the ban was rushed and flawed; the Guardian headline gives Reddit's argument top billing while Al Jazeera's stays neutral.
Australia Loaded verb“rushed through”Presents Reddit's characterization of the legislative process as fact in the outlet's own voice.More neutral: passedDisagree with this highlight? ‘Loaded modifier“ill-thought-out”A judgement on the legislation that comes from Reddit's lawyers, not from the outlet.More neutral: hurriedThese are Reddit’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ under-16s social media ban, Reddit argues as high court challenge begins
The GuardianLeftAll left-leaning headlines
the center
1 outlet
The BBC headline states the legal challenge neutrally, while its description leads with the rights group's argument that the ban robs under-16s of free communication.
Legal challenge to Australia's social media ban to start in High Court
BBC NewsCenterAll center headlines
the right
No coverage yet
No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

Left1
rushed through
Center1
robs
Right
Has not covered this story.

In the outlets’ own words

Loaded verb
robsMore neutral: limits
States the group's argument in the outlet's own voice as if the ban already takes away children's rights, before the court has ruled.
A rights group will argue the world-leading policy robs under-16s of their right to free communication.
Used byBBC News (Center)
Loaded verb
rushed throughMore neutral: passed
Presents Reddit's characterization of the legislative process as fact in the outlet's own voice.
Australia rushed through ‘ill-thought-out’ under-16s social media ban, Reddit argues as high court…
Used byThe Guardian (Left)

Words quoted from someone else (1)Hide the quoted words

Loaded words that outlets reported someone else saying. They show what was said, not how the outlet chose to say it.

Loaded modifier
Quoted
ill-thought-outMore neutral: hurried
A judgement on the legislation that comes from Reddit's lawyers, not from the outlet.
Australia rushed through ‘ill-thought-out’ under-16s social media ban, Reddit argues as high court challenge begins
Quoted byThe Guardian (Left)
These are Reddit’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

2 outlets

Leads with

Reddit's argument that the ban was rushed
limited effectiveness of the ban
enforcement problems and lack of scientific evidence
implied freedom of political communication

Leaves out

Supporters' case that the ban protects children from harmful content
Two teen plaintiffs who have withdrawn from the case

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 2 headlines from the leftHide the headlines

Al Jazeera EnglishLeft
Australia’s High Court hears bid to overturn under-16s social media ban
Online giant Reddit and advocacy group Digital Freedom Project argue ban is unconstitutional.
1 hr agoRead at Al Jazeera English (opens in a new tab)
The GuardianLeft
Australia Loaded verb“rushed through”Presents Reddit's characterization of the legislative process as fact in the outlet's own voice.More neutral: passedDisagree with this highlight? ‘Loaded modifier“ill-thought-out”A judgement on the legislation that comes from Reddit's lawyers, not from the outlet.More neutral: hurriedThese are Reddit’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ under-16s social media ban, Reddit argues as high court challenge begins
Reddit challenges ban on grounds it impinges implied freedom of political communications for teens The Australian government’s rush to pass the under-16s social media ban legislation in 2024 led to “ill-thought-out, over-broad legislation” that has since been narrowed after …
4 hr agoRead at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
1 more from The Guardian
- Reddit and libertarian group challenge Australia’s under-16s social media ban in high court

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

the rights group's free-communication argument
the start of the High Court challenge
the ban as a landmark policy
the Reddit challenge heard jointly

Leaves out

Reddit's argument that the law was rushed
Albanese's figure of more than 5 million suspended accounts

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the headline from the centerHide the headlines

BBC NewsCenter
Legal challenge to Australia's social media ban to start in High Court
A rights group will argue the world-leading policy Loaded verb“robs”States the group's argument in the outlet's own voice as if the ban already takes away children's rights, before the court has ruled.More neutral: limitsDisagree with this highlight? under-16s of their right to free communication.
12 hr agoRead at BBC News (opens in a new tab)

From the right

0 outlets

No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

The stories you read build My Mix, a private picture of which sides cover the stories you choose, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

Left
First to report
The Guardian, Nov 2, 9:00 AM EST
Center
5 hr 12 min later
Its first report, Nov 2, 2:12 PM EST
Right
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order

The GuardianLeftNov 2, 9:00 AM EST
BBC NewsCenterNov 2, 2:12 PM EST
Al Jazeera EnglishLeftNov 3, 1:59 AM EST

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

High Court hears Reddit and rights group's challenge to under-16s social media ban

Coverage spectrum

Key points

Compare views

the left

the center

the right

Language to notice

In the outlets’ own words

Side by side

From the left

Australia’s High Court hears bid to overturn under-16s social media ban

From the center

Legal challenge to Australia's social media ban to start in High Court

From the right

How the coverage built up

Read next

Americans vote in midterm elections that will decide control of Congress

Learjet 60 crashes in Palm Beach County, Florida, killing all nine aboard

Democrat Haley Stevens endorses Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan Senate race

Two high-speed trains collide in Spain, killing at least 10 people

Trump says he would consider preemptive pardons for aides if Democrats win Congress